French roller-skater Taig Kris set a new world record for the longest jump with roller-skates on when he dropped off the Eiffel Tower.

On Saturday 29th May 2010, a new Guinness World Record was set at the Eiffel Tower in Paris for the Highest Jump onto a Ramp (quarter pipe) by Taïg Khris, French athlete several times champion in the rollerblades category.

On this occasion, Guinness World Records adjudicators Rob Molloy and Justine Bourdariat have come all the way from London to verify the record attempt and hand Taïg Khris with an official Guinness World Records certificate should the record be broken.

After 2 years of preparation, the day has come for Taïg to attempt the world record. His goal is to beat Danny Way’s Guinness World Record of 8.53 meters for the Highest drop onto a ramp in the skateboard category. Taïg is going for a 10 meters jump. The ramp is 30 meters high and the platform where Taïg will jump from has been raised 5 meters above it. The athlete will then raise it to 8 meters high for the official record attempt.

The Guinness World Records adjudicators go to the top of the platform to verify its height. The view of Paris is truly amazing to say the least (see the photo above.)

Taig Khris jumps the 30 meter halfpipe from the first floor of the Eiffel Tower.

The skater, who calls himself the “ramp warrior”, according to Sky News, lost his footing on landing and sliding down at speed into a giant air bag on his first attempt but he was went back for a second try. The second time round he found his feet and set a new world record for the highest jump on roller skates ever to take place in the world.

Fearless, Taïg Khris thrusts himself onto the ramp 3 times, raising the platform and breaking the record on each occasion with jumps of 9.50 meters, 12 meters, finally establishing the final Guinness World Record with a jump of 12 meters 50.

Adding a 5th world record to his list of achievements Taïg is crowned new Guinness World Record holder for the Highest Jump onto a Ramp (rollerblading) with a staggering 12.50 meters achieved. The adjudicators then present him with a Guinness World Records certificate in front of a cheering crowd of 80,000 people. The French athlete enters history once again.

Taig Khris dropped a record 39ft from a 131ft platform attached to the Eiffel Tower.

The Eiffel Tower is an 1889 iron lattice tower located on the Champ de Mars in Paris that has become both a global icon of France and one of the most recognizable structures in the world. The Eiffel Tower, which is the tallest building in Paris, is the single most visited paid monument in the world; millions of people ascend it every year. Named after its designer, engineer Gustave Eiffel, the tower was built as the entrance arch for the 1889 World’s Fair.

The tower stands 324 m (1,063 ft) tall, about the same height as an 81-story building. It was the tallest man-made structure in the world from its completion until the Chrysler Building in New York City was built in 1930. Not including broadcast antennas, it is the second-tallest structure in France after the 2004 Millau Viaduct.

Taig Khris saw the Eiffel Tower as a challenge for an extreme sports in-line skating champion. After completing the jumps, he said: “I’ve never had such a strong adrenaline rush. Two years non-stop, I didn’t sleep for nights and nights for that small moment up there and now, as you can see, I made it so that’s cool.”

He also said his jump was “to give people the desire to reach beyond their limits, to follow their passions, their dreams.” Taig is already planning his future record setting adventure but is mum for now on where it will be staged or from what extreme height he will jump from on his next challenge. [Taig Khris via Digital Journal and DailyMail (UK)]

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